Many of the contemporary works in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs Art collection are print works, including linocuts, screenprints, etchings and lithographs.
Aboriginal activist Kevin Gilbert's foray into lino-printmaking generated stunning examples of the power of this simple medium. Artists Fiona Foley, Karen Casey, Sally Morgan, Rosella Namok, Rover Thomas and Judy Watson are also represented.
The success of artists from the southern and eastern parts of Australia, many of whom were formally trained, led the way for master printmakers to take their expertise into more remote areas in the 1980s.
These specialist printmakers ran workshops where artists were able to create designs directly onto plates that the printmakers then took back to their studios to print. The relatively low cost of this form of art production meant that original artworks became affordable and accessible to a wide market.
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